Apologies can be difficult
by PuppiesPeeOnFlowers
Summary: SCRAPPED
1. Chapter 1

"Well ain't _that_ a first." Ellis spoke in a soft tone, accent thick and heavy as he peeked over the bush. Nose scrunched in slight disgust, he turned to the heavyset man beside him and stared as he, too, peered over the leaves, giving an almost inaudible 'Ugh'.

The first thing Ellis had eyed when he was, as usual, rushing ahead of the group was the spitter. Nothing unusual, naw. He was just planning on yelling out the usual, 'Spitter!' and rushing ahead of the bushes, shooting like crazy and attracting the horde. But what _was_ odd was that it wasn't just a spitter he'd laid his lovely eyes upon. Oh, and when he'd realized what that spitter was doing, how happy he was that Nick was right behind him.

"Shush it, overalls!" he hissed, covering the hicks mouth with his hand and ducking behind the bushes. After a second or two had passed and all that could be heard was their heavy breathing, along with Rochelle's and Coach's, Nick withdrew his hand and allowed Ellis to peer over the bushes with that disgusted look on his face.

It was a boomer and a spitter, working together. And they were doing more then just helping each other out with killing survivors. Oh no. What with the nboises, and, surprisingly, the lack of clothes, it was impossible for something like that to be going on. rather, it must be some sort of zombie mating, or so Ellis had assumed. The Spitter 'gracefully' lifting herself and making those hacking noises as she rodewhat he could only assume was the boomers trouser snake. Occasioanlly they would exchange bodily fluids, and by that, he meant acid and bile.

"Thas' just disgusting, man." Once again, it was Ellis who broke the silence, pulling away from the bush and covering his mouth, trying his best not to vomit himself. "Ellis, you gotta quite running ahead sweety. What if you had interrupted them?" Rochelle asked, sitting beside him and patting softly at his shoulder. At that, he looked at her with a horrified expression.

"Probably would've been pretty damn funny." Nick grumbled, looking over the bush for the first time since he'd dragged Ellis down. Ugh, disgusting. What he saw was a spitter, and ... Wait, what was that ... ? "Nobody mentioned _anything_ about this being two women. Fucking Christ ..." Nick grumbled, frown deepening.

"W-Women!?" Ellis blinked, voice not just loud enough to attract the attention of the two mating zombies. Hurriedly he popped his head up and gave a disgusted groan as the spitter lifted herself to reveal the hand of a fellow zombie dangling from the area that could've once been called her ... Well, skipping that, she pulled it out with her hands, more choking and hacking noises leaving her elongated throat as she moved her mouth down to the female boomers crotch, burying what was once her lips between the morbidly obese zombies legs.

"Sh-Shit, this is makin me sick, ya'll ..." Ellis spoke, covering his mouth and standing before grabbing his shotgun, throwing it over his shoulder and staggering away, finding a place he where he could vomit in peace. Or so he thought. Nick was, as usual, right behind him, a smirk on his face, and a triumphant look plastered across his bloody face.

"I thought you were tougher then that." Nick snorted, pushing himself off of the wooden outhouse and snickering.

"Shut up ya' prick." ellis grumbled, walking out and wiping at his chin, lower lip puffed out as he looked from first the bewildered Rochelle, then to Coach, who was staring with a look that obviously said, 'Been there, done that'. And, of course, Ellis didn't want to know.

"It's alright if you're a pussy. Fits in well with all the other things I could describe you as."

At that, Ellis arched a brow.

"And what 're those?" he asked, folding his arms across his chest and snorting.

"Annoying, loud-mouthed, hick, loser, idiot, reckless, clumsy ..." And the list went on, Ellis' slight smile falling and turning into a scowl. "Well shit, Nick. I dun' see what in the hell I dun' to make ya' hate me so damn much." he spat, pushing just slightly at the man who was now rolling his eyes and giving an exasperated sigh.

"Fuck, Ellis! Are you so stupid!? You just brought us to a live zombie porn theater, and you don't understand why the hell I'm annoyed with you!? You rush ahead, get yourself in trouble and then guess who takes the fall for it? Not your sorry ass!" Nick yelled, throwing his gun to the ground and scowling. "You're such a damn idiot, can't you just stick with the group!?"

Ellis stared, eyes slightly widened. "Shit, Nick ... I-" He was silenced as soon as a fist met the side of his face.

"You know what, maybe it's better if you don't stay with the group! Maybe it's better you rush ahead and get yourself killed! Then we won't have to look after your sorry ass!"

Nick was stunned at even his sudden outburst, and, as he withdrew his hand, he somewhat regretted being so mean to the poor kid. Somewhat. After all, he was so damn annoying, and all he ever talked about was Keith this, or Keith that. His stories got old, his rushing ahead got old, his happy-go-fucking-lucky attitude got old. Nick couldn't take it anymore. But perhaps he'd gone too far.

Feeling Rochelle punch him lightly on his right arm, then feeling the glare from Coach, he could only assume that was the case.

"Look, Ellis, I'm sorry. It's just you-"

Now it was Nick's turn to be silenced. "'S okay, Nick. I gotcha, man." Ellis spoke, smiling weakly and grabbing his shotgun that had, when he was hit, fallen to the ground. "Ya'll come get me when Nick's all tuckered out, ya hear?" the southerner spoke, tipping his hat and turning before hurriedly walking forward, leaving Nick to stare at the boys retreating figure.

"Why you, I'll fucking-" he started, feet moving and an angered expression crossing his face as he started to move, only to have a feminine hand grip his wrist. "Haven't you done enough damage!?" she cried, scowling before pulling ahead of him and lifting her gun. "You stay with Coach, and I'll go after El. Give you time to reflect on what you've done." the woman spat.

"Someday you'll be regretting it." Rochelle hissed before turning and running after the youngest boy who was now lost in the woods, leaving Nick alone with Coach who could merely shake his head and grumble, "Helluva day."


	2. Chapter 2

"Ellis, wait up, sweetie ..." Rochelle spoke, finally catching up with the man after a wild chase. Or, not so much of a chase as an everytime she caught up, he moved further ahead with a whine of sorts, probably thinking she was Nick. But now that she'd grabbed his shoulder and spoken in her soft, mellifluous tone, he allowed himself to pause, head hanging and gun lowering.

"There you go." the woman said, moving to push his gun further down as she turned him to face her. "I know you must be hurtin' from what Nick said, but he doesn't mean it. You know how he is." she continued, smiling sweetly as she tried to get him to lift his face, managing after a few tried, only to see the face that reminded her so much of a lost puppy. Adorable. "C'mon, sweetie." the woman coaxed, starting to walk ahead of him and shooting some of the common infected that dared to prance in front of her. "Let's walk a little bit, shall we?"

---- [ Coach & Nick ] ----

Nick sighed, shaking his head and furrowing his brows, running his fingers through the hair that he swore was falling off of his head. "For fucks sake, I told you I was going to apologize when he got back!" the man yelled, slapping at his leg and looking over at the older man who, for the thousandth time, had decided to scold him about what had happened between him and Ellis earlier. Yeah, he felt bad about it! Of course he did! Not like he meant to hurt the stupid Hicks feelings, it was just ... He was so exhausted from all the sleepless days and nights, and the fact he was so hungry he could probably eat a horse. The thought made him snort, and think of Ellis, too. That kid loved horses, if his memory wasn't failing him.

"Yeah, well has the thought occurred to you that those two might not be coming back? Shit, have you even thought about going after them? It's already almost night, and here we are, still waiting for those two to come back!" Coach yelled, strapping a healthpack to his back and grabbing his gun. "I don't know about you, but I actually care for my team, and I care to stay alive. So you can sit here and get your ass eaten by those lesbian bitches, or you can get moving and help me find our teammates."

It hadn't even occurred to Nick that Rochelle and Ellis had been gone that long. Now, as he looked up at the sky, fear rushed through his body. "Fuck, whatever ..." he grumbled, standing and frowning as he grabbed his own gun and healthpack, following the chocolate colored man with a grimace on his face, and worry hidden deep within him.

---- [ //// ] ----

It was at least half an hour before they finally found where both of their friends were laying, motionless on the ground. And, even when Nick, surprisingly, wanted to rush over to Ellis and shake the boy awake, he couldn't. Another weird encounter was, unfortunately, the biggest obstacle.

"Fucking ..." Nick hissed, hiding behind a tree on the opposite side of Coach and looking at both the hunter and smoker who where so happily, if he could describe it as that, holding hands and ... Shivers ran up the mans spine as he thought of those tongues wrapping around the smokers hoodie as kissing. And there, right beside the two of them, were Rochelle and Ellis, both bleeding profusely, and neither looking as if they were breathing.

Coach tightened a hold of his gun before shaking his head. "You wanna risk this?" Coach hissed, staring at Nick and waiting as he watched the smokers tongue remove the hunters hoodie, only to make him grimace at the horridly disfigured face. Well, better looking then most of the infected, he'd give them that much. "Damn lesbian, homosexual zombies ... What the hell kind of an Apocalypse ..." And, right at that, nick jumped out and started shooting, grimace still evident on his face as he parted his lips and screamed, "Is this!?"

It took a few minutes, but soon the smoker was dead, and the hunter was running of screaming what Nick was hoping weren't promises for vengeance. But, as soon as that special infected fled, he rushed over to Ellis' side and inspected him, resting a hand on his bleeding chest and cursing aloud as he removed his healthpack and started to bandage the man up while Coach tried to take care of Rochelle.

Soon, thank god, soon Ellis was awake and Nick was slapping him across the face, yelling at him for being the fool he was and inwardly sobbing with thanks, wishing more then anything to hug him and ask for forgiveness. And it was sad, how he knew it was too late when the man rested a hand on his cheek and scowled, clenching his hands into fists and spitting out something that went unheard before moving over to Coach. All Nick could do at that moment was glare and tell himself this was for the best. Best not to get to close to a guy like him.

"You be good, Ro." Ellis murmured, Nick's ears perking up as he stumbled over, looking at the lifeless figure of the reporter. "Aw, shit ... Rochelle ..." Nick murmured, rubbing at his forehead. She hadn't made it. The wounds had been much too deep and, even with the help of a wasted healthpack, she wasn't reviving. Too bad there were no defib units around.

"I can think of two other people I would have rather seen go first." It was instinctive, and he regretted it the moment the words came out. He seemed to be hurting that hick more then usual today. Or maybe the guy was just overly sensitive and he'd never known that until now.

"Well shittt, din' mean to be a bother!" Ellis spoke, standing up and giving a sigh. "C'mon, Coach. Nick wants ta' be alone." the hick spoke, not noticing the somewhat apologetic look that was plastered on Nick's face. "Well, I think I'm gun' stay here just a while longer. You two go ahead. Don't wonder off alone." Coach spoke, giving a stern look to Ellis who first spat, then huffed and started to walk, Nick following behind with reluctance.

He jsut couldn't understand why, the first time in his life, he was feeling so bad for offending a hick. Maybe it was because Ellis was just so puppy-like, and he did admit, those things were pretty damn cute. Ellis had that charm, and it was ... Man, that guy was getting to him. He would not give in. No, for the sake of his sanity, he could not give in to the charm of a hick.


	3. Chapter 3

Ellis huffed, inwardly fuming as he gripped his shotgun with all his might, ignoring the all-too familiar footsteps behind him. Nick ... Coach had just had to send Nick after him. What a pain in the ass. Of course all he ever did try to do was be friends, but Nick, the damn prick he was, wasn't having none of it. Or, so it seemed. Couldn't even get up the nerve to apologize, and,rather, he got slapped in the face! Man oh man did he have a right mind to turn around and shoot the guy right where it-

"Yo, Ellis." The hick was pulled abruptly out of his angered thoughts as he turned to look at the man, staring at him and, naively, expecting that he might be ready to apologize or something of the such. Of course that wasn't it. Shit, he'd been mighty dumb for expecting something like that.

"Don't wander head, man. I'm already injured because of you, it's hard enough keeping up with you now." Ellis could only stare for just a few seconds before glaring, then spitting and giving a huff.

"I reckon thas' jus fine, seein as it don' matter much now do it?"

Nick sighed softly, somehow wishing that his gambling tactics had something to help him out of this predicament. He had an angry southerner, a right cute one, sadly, pissed off at him because he was just being himself. Not to mention said southerner was very unlucky when it came to special infected, as was seen earlier.

"C'mon, Ellis. You know I was just trying to look out for you man." Nick tried to explain, hoping the the idiot still fuming in front of him would understand this was his way of apologizing. Maybe it wasn't a good one, but it was all he had, and it was probably all Ellis would get.

In return, he received a huff, the younger man obviously having none of it. So they just continued to walk, shooting what they saw and, thank god, missing the horde and any special infected. Well, almost, anyway. It was just a few feet away from the safehouse and there, that damn, clumsy Ellis, there he jsut had to trip a car alarm and alert all the nearby infected of their presence. But Nick had to say, he felt that, at the moment, the seemingly endless infected and the death of Rochelle was enough of a punishment. Besides, he didn't want the kid anymore angry at him then he already was, especially seeing as there still had been no sign of Coach.

Soon the two were back to back, Nick not minding(Surprisingly) the contact, but Ellis obviously moving away just as soon as there was any open spot. And that, Nick knew, that was a bad idea. "Ellis, dammit, stay close for once in you goddamn ..."

Too late. They had been seperated, he being pushed closer to the safe house as the horde closed in on him, and Ellis being pushed further away. "You shitty hick! Where are you!?" Nick called, shooting at the common infected that attacked him relentlessly. And, just as he got to the safehouse and closed the door so he could quickly reload his gun, there was a voice from outside, "SUMBITCH IS ON MY BACK!"

A jockey. "Shit!" Nick cursed, trying to open the door, only to find that it was jammed. Jammed!? How the ... Ah, shit, how could he not have realized? The zombies that had decided to follow him were holding tight to the door, what little instincts they had left telling them that separation was probably the wisest choice. And, for them, it was. But this was really, really pissing him off, and no matter how much he shot at those damn things holding him back from Ellis, they just kept coming. If only he could get to the car and turn off that alarm!

"I got hit by the burnin' goo shit!" Ellis called, alarming Nick even more. He'd been out there, alone, for long enough, surely he was incapacitated. "Damn infected, can't you-" And, not moments later, the alarm was shut off and the infected were turning their attention to the overweight man in the center of the crowd, chewing on what he hoped to god wasn't Rochelle's arm and shooting away at the zombies like they were nothing.

As soon as the door was free of infected, mindless, brain-eating people, Nick rushed out and headed towards the moaning hick, stuck laying on the ground and wiping the burning acid off of him with shaky hands. "Oh man. Oh man oh man oh man oh man..." Was all he could, and did say as he was helped up, Nick managing to get the man to settle down enough so he could throw that bloodied arm around his neck and help him to the safehouse Coach was already inside.

"Shit, I told you two to stay together! Ellis, man, c'mon ... You know how them specials are attracted to you like ..." Coach stopped for a minute, closing the door as Nick set Ellis down, allowing him to slump down in the corner of the room and groan. "Like you to Chocolate?" Nick asked, managing a smirk as he looked around for a healthpack. Nothing. Dammit, that didn't sound so good for Ellis, or his poor old heart.

"Hmph." Was all he got in response from coach as he looked to the boy in the corner, laughing and slapping a hand down on the floor. "Aw, cummon now! I dun' just fine, ain't I?" he spoke, nodding and giving a soft laugh. "You know, this reminds me of the time me 'n my friend, Keith, well, we-"

That was the last straw. Right now, he couldn't take it. "Ellis! Shut up! Shut up, man, alright!? Do you not know when to give that shit a rest!?" Nick yelled, tossing his gun to the side and slamming his fist against the wall. "What's wrong with you!? Are you gonna keep telling stories about Keith until you die?! Because if so, let me grant your wish!"

But, thank god, before he could throw a punch, Coach grabbed his arm and tugged him back. "What in the hell do you think you're doing? Look at the poor boy! Ain't gonna last much longer if we don't find something for him, and here you are beating up on his spirit. You damn grouch, get in there and put the kid to bed!" Coach hissed, Nick looking to Ellis who was now just angrily staring at the floor and clutching his bleeding chest. Too bad that wasn't all that was bleeding.

"Fine. Fine, fine." the conman grumbled, moving over to help the hick up and carry him into the bedroom, a scowl on his face. Stupid kid, still tried to protest even though he was bleeding from almost every part of his body. But thanks to that, he was weak, and couldn't put up much a fight.

"That's better." Coach mumbled, nodding as the door to the bedroom closed. After that, he opened the saferoom door and, with much caution, brought in the bottom of an exploded boomer, dragged it to the side of the saferoom and sat on it, munching away at the few fingers of Rochelle he had hidden in his pocket. Gotta live life to the fullest was what he was always taught.


	4. Chapter 4

Nick sighed softly as he allowed his eyes to wander across the boy laying on the uncomfortable bed, chest bare and bleeding. But, whether it be for good or for bad, Ellis had passed out after just a few minutes of chattering away, trying to pry free the reasons why he was so mean to the boy. Not a word left his busted lips as he merely scowled, ordering the boy to lay down and be still. He wasn't going to give away how worried he was. He absolutely could not do it. But the least he could do to show he cared was cover the others lower half that was thankfully still clothed with the dirty blanket.

"Dammit Ellis, why are you so difficult?" the conman asked himself, leaning back against the wall and wiping at his sweaty brow. It sucked. He'd definitely never felt this way about anyone else, so protective, so needy, so ... so ...

Sighing softly, the elder of the two looked at Ellis' sleeping form, allowing his eyes to wander across the mans face, tracing and memorizing every feature he could before finally bringing himself to look at the others chest. Not a pretty sight, at least not at the moment. All he could do to stop the bleeding was wrap some of the blanket around it, and still Ellis was groaning, breath hitching as he slept. The thought had never occurred to Nick that the hick could die so very easily when he was sleeping, that he was so vulnerable, at this moment. What was it about that that made him want to ravish the boy as he lay, half naked, bleeding ... Such easy prey.

Gripping the bridge of his nose with his thumb and index finger, Nick calmed himself, well aware of how bad an idea that was. Coach was in the other room, Ellis was a talker, and ... Well, the boy was dying, though he didn't want to admit it. Damn, how badly he wanted to apologize right now. "Ellis ..." Nick spoke softly, hoarsely.

Very slowly the man moved so that he was sitting right beside the hick. Leaning down, he examined the man, watching his chest rise and fall slowly, breathing shallow. "C'mon overalls." he murmured, moving his hand shakily and hesitantly to the mans face, resting it on his cheek for just a few seconds before moving his thumb across the soft skin, then allowing his fingers to travel up and into the curly locks of brunette hair, savoring the soft touch. It was amazing how they manged to remain so soft and still look so beautiful, even despite the fact it must've been forever since Ellis had had any kind of bath. He didn't stink all too bad, either, unless you counted the ever present smell of blood. It was strong, filling his nostrils and completely covering the smell of 'Ellis'.

At the moment, Nick was completely lost in thought, eyes still wandering across the hicks face. It was sad that he'd just realized how lovely the man looked. Sure, they were in the middle of an apocalypse and were constantly fighting for their lives, and yes, he'd felt 'somewhat' attracted to the hick at times before this, but now, now that he was staring at the pale face of the southerner before him, he felt that tugging on hsi heartstrings he thought he'd felt so many times before. But for Ellis, it was real. The feeling of wanting this guy to stay alive, to be there with him at the end of all this, was real.

A soft, barely managed chuckle left his lips as he withdrew his hand, leaning closer and squinting as he continued examining the boy laying on the bed, memorizing his every feature. Just in case. It wasn't too long and he was closing his eyes, then leaning down even closer so that their lips were touching, though just barely. He wanted more, to lean in and taste all of the tantalizing hick, but he couldn't bring himself to do so. This was dangerous, and every instinct was telling him this. But he wanted it, and hadn't he always lived his life on the edge?

Slowly he took in a shaky breath, pulling back and knitting his brows together as he murmured soft curses under his breath. "You damn hick." he murmured, once again letting his eyes trace over the boys features before standing and grabbing his gun, then heading out of the one separate room, trying not to press the tips of his fingers to his lips that felt as if they might just melt on his face.

Once he was sure the other had left the room, Ellis opened his eyes wide and gasped, sitting up and being sure to make as little noise as possible. Lips parted as he gripped the mattress beneath him, blinking in disbelief before looking down at himself, then covering his lips and stifling a groan. Unbelievable. That definitely hadn't counted as a kiss, right? He was sleeping, so technically that was rape, right? Yeah, he was going to go with that story, if Nick ever found out he'd actually been awake through that. Once again the hick groaned, cheeks warming as he lowered his head and rubbed at his bloody face, wishing he he had the strength to barge into the other room and demand to know 'What the hell' that had been. But, at the moment, all he do was watch himself bleed as his mind wandered elsewhere.


	5. Chapter 5

"Coach ..." Nick stared at the man, sitting on what could only be the bottom half of a boomer and finishing up on ... "Is that Rochelle?" the conman asked, staring in disbelief. Sure, Coach had always been talking of food, and that seemed to be the second most important thing on his mind, but this ... This was unbelievable! "Jesus Christ, can you not respect the dead!?" A pretty hypocritical thing to say, seeing as all of those zombies were considered dead, and he was shooting away at them like they were tin cans on a fence and he was a child practicing with his gun.

The heavyset man looked at him, staring before shaking his head from side to side. "Listen, ain't had any food in quite a while, and my stomach was aching for something to eat. Rochelle was dead, and now she can at least help me out even in death." the man explained, leaning back on the 'chair' he'd made for himself and finishing off the last of the fingers he had brought with him. Nick could only stare, a disgusted look on his face.

"Fine, fine, I can see we're not going to get anywhere talking about that." Nick grumbled, sitting on the floor after a thorough examination of his teammates face, if Coach was still human, which he hoped he was. Well, cannibalism had existed before the apocalypse, so perhaps he shouldn't be thinking so much of it. It was just that was definitely not what he wanted to happen to him, if he died before they made it to safety. And that-That wouldn't happen to Ellis, because he wasn't going to let the kid die, no matter how stupid he felt for even thinking he could somehow help the guy.

Coach continued sitting on the infected males bottom, legs folded and eyes glued to the door. "Yep." he mumbled, blinking and giving a soft sigh. Nick didn't even bother asking about the boomer. As if cannibalism wasn't weird enough. Tch, yeah, well, he still didn't necessarily want to fight with Coach. He was bigger, and probably stronger. Besides that, he wanted to stay alive, and what with Ellis how he was, it would be impossible without Coach.

Running his fingers through his hair which was still somewhat slicked back, Nick gave a soft sigh just thinking of Ellis in the other room. He did want to go back in there and watch over the kid, make sure he wasn't ... Well, anything. But there wasn't much he could do, and he couldn't seem to pull his mind out of the gutter even though he was trying. Oh god, he was trying so hard to think of staying alive rather then claiming that hick as his own.

And, almost as if on cue, Coach grunted, then asked how Ellis seemed to be doing. Nick scratched at the side of his head, sighing once again. "He's doing alright." the man spoke quietly, hoping this was true. It wasn't as bad as it could've been, thank god, but the poor kid was still far from okay, especially because he was bleeding profusely, though thanks to the bed covers he did admit at least the chest wounds weren't looking as bad as before.

Coach gave a nod of understanding, knowing full well that there was no way Ellis was okay. After all, he'd been beat up pretty damn badly, and there was nothing around to help patch the poor kid up. "Ain't nothing we can do but wait."

Yeah, if that wasn't true, then nothing was. "Tomorrow, we can continue on. It won't do us any good, none of us, to just lay here and wait to be eaten." The thought made Nick shudder as he looked to the bones on the floor. Poor Rochelle. "Not too much longer and we'll get to safety." Thank god. Nick was thanking whatever god may be up in heaven as he nodded, then moved to sit in front of the door leading to Ellis' room.

"I got first shift, so just get some sleep." Coach informed with a smile. Nick didn't protest. After all, he was exhausted, as he always was, and the worry of what would happen to Ellis was just making it worse. "Alright ... Wake me up in a few." And with that, Nick was closing his eyes and nodding off into that little dreamworld full of nightmares.

---- [ //// ] ----

Instead of ever guarding the door, it turned out Coach had been kind enough to let him sleep the entire night. When the first rays of light seeped through the bars and hit his face, he was groaning and rubbing at his eyes, trying to block out the noise that invaded his eardrums. At first he wanted to get back to sleep, but once he realized who the owner of that voice was, his eyes snapped open and he was staring at the blurry forms of Ellis and Coach.

"Yeah, so Keith and I was like, runnin', ya' know, cuz it'd be kinda dumb to stay after ya' dun that, an-" Nick stared, arching a brow as Ellis stopped, noticing he was awake. "Oh, hey Nick! Damn man, we thought you's was gonna sleep forever! C'mon, get up, we gotta get movin'." the southerner said with a nod, hobbling over and making Nick wince visibly. How the kid managed to stay so cheerful even when he looked so bad was beyond him. And how he could so quickly forgive all of the yelling and hitting, well, he wouldn't question it, because this was a wonderful thing. A blessing.

"I'm awake, I'm awake. Just let me get some ammo and we can head off." Nick murmured, standing up with a groan. Brushing the dust off of his bottom, Nick looked back to Ellis who was, for some reason, staring at him with a somewhat expectant look. "What? Need help walking?" he asked, snorting and moving over to load up his gun, shuddering at the laugh he received as a reply. "Not really, but that'd be jus' great.I got this limp, and whoo, I won't even lie! I'm hurtin'." Nick sighed inwardly before moving over, gun now loaded.

"We'll fix you up soon, overalls, so don't kill over." the conman murmured, throwing that warm arm over his neck and trying his best not to get worked up as he slowly stepped in line behind Coach, who was already starting to open the door that led out of the saferoom.

Nick breathed in heavily, moving his free hand to softly pat the hick on the back, receiving a surprised gasp of sorts in return. Damn, bad idea. "Don't worry, kid." Nick started, looking to Ellis who was, as usual, flashing off that brilliant smile, though this time directing it at him. "I'll be careful not to drop you."

Then, with one final smirk, the door was kicked open and they were heading outside, Ellis yelping happily despite the trail of blood behind them.


	6. Chapter 6

"Well, looks like we're makin' sum good time, huh guys?" Ellis spoke, smiling brilliantly as he leaned against the outhouse standing 'proudly' outside of the swamp. "Jus' a few more miles, and boom! We're tah the nex' safehouse. Sounds pre~tty good to me." he continued, rubbing at his temple and shaking his head, mounting the machete he'd been using on his back as the heavyset man walked next to him, gasping for more air.

After a moment of just standing there and catching his breath, Nick jumped in, stopping Ellis before he got any further in telling another one of his 'Keith' stories. "Alright then, we'd better get moving, isn't that right, overalls?" Damn, it seemed he just couldn't seem to get over this newfound thought that took over his entire being. Ellis was cute. Very, very cute. If only he had met a woman like Ellis, perhaps he might've hit it off well with ehr. No, who was he kidding. Ellis was fucking insane, but he was all Nick had left, and, well ... Truly he wasn't sure how he felt about that. It was a mixture of emotions. He wanted to touch and feel the boy, but those annoying stories of a friend he knew was dead just got on his nerves. He couldn't seriously be starting to like Ellis, could he? No, maybe it was just the way things were.

And, before he knew it, they were moving again. Or at least Ellis was with Coach following as quickly as he could behind him. And, mind every person that might be left alive on the sad planet once known as Earth, that wasn't very fast. So Nick, being the 'affectionate' person he was, hurried ahead of Coach, moving just behind Ellis and grabbing his shoulder with a somewhat exasperated sigh. "Ellis, you are the biggest idiot. Haven't you learned your lesson yet? Coach is so far behind us, and I-"

A few seconds more was all it took for him to register the look on his friends face. It wasn't one of stupidity, but he sure was staring stupidly. Though, once the hick pushed his face closer, Nick could feel his ehart pounding. Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit! there was definitely something wrong about he felt short of breath just because Ellis was pushing his face closerr and scrunching his nose in that absolutely irresistable manner. He was tempted to close the distance between them, and smash their lips together in what he ws sure would be a kiss he would remember forever, even if it was for all the wrong reasons.

But then Ellis pulled back, staring with furrowed brows and a frown that was unrecognizable. "Why'd ya' do it, Nick?" he suddenly asked, stepping closer and forcing Nick to move back, swallowing the lump in his throat. "Do what ... ? What the hell are you talking about, kid?" he asked, staring at him with a frown as Ellis grumbled, then rested his hands on his hips. "Ya' asshole! You were going to molest me in my sleep, weren't you?! Dammit, what's your problem!" he asked, not giving the man anytime to answer before he blushed faintly, then turned and started to walk, coach finally catching up with them, along with the horde of zombies behind him. Just as soon as they'd fought all off the zombies off, Ellis was back to his smiling, happy self, but Nick-Nick couldn't believe it. Ellis had seen?

For the rest of the walk to the safehouse, Nick was silent as Ellis chattered away about Keith. Keith this and Keith that ... Normally it would piss him the hell off. It still did, but he was just too busy thinking about the fact that Ellis knew. the hick was dangerous, and now ... now Nick was the one straying behind, not wishing to get closer to the man then he had to.

"Yo guys, I gotta take a piss. Gaurd me, won't ya'll?" Ellis interrupted the mans thoughts as he headed into one of the public restrooms, leaving both he and Coach to stand outside waiting. As he did, he thought and thought, wondering what the hell sort of mistake he'd made. No answer came. Probably because he was interrupted by the screaming voice of Ellis. He had to admit, even the mans screams were breathtaking. But he hadn't much time to think about that, for soon he was bursting into the restroom, eyes wide with shock upon seeing Ellis hugging another, uninfected man.

"Holy shit, guys!" the man yelled as Nick forced himself to not pull the trigger and shoot the other guy in the head. "Is' Keith!"


	7. Chapter 7

"Calm down, Nicolas ... You've gotten through worse then this." the man spoke to himself with gritted teeth as he lowered his gun and rubbed at his temple. It had only been a good three hours since Ellis had found that buddy 'Keith' of his in the restroom, and already Nick was going crazy. And it wasn't just him. As if Coach hadn't been acting weird enough, now he was nearly foaming at the mouth, trying to stop from telling the two 'buddies' that were wandering ahead to shut up. And as difficult as it was for Coach, it was about a thousand times more difficult for Nick.

It was so sad, how he felt jealousy pooling inside of him with every little word either of the two men spoke to each other. He wasn't going to lie; That 'Keith' seemed like someone a hick like Ellis would get along well with. Too well. And he didn't like that one bit. Why, oh why, did he have to just realize how attached he'd grown to Ellis? That now he felt as if the only way to keep the damn hick safe was to possess him? And yeah, that was meant just how it sounded, too. But what could he say … he was a conman. It was in his nature to not care what others thought of him.

And so he didn't. But that didn't always apply for the person he was directing his anger towards. How surprising it was, to see Keith occasionally turn his head and stare, only to burst out laughing after Ellis would lean closer and whisper something, then slap his leg and give a loud 'hoot'. What in the hell were those guys talking about!? He urged himself to get closer, to follow them and listen in on all their secrets. Then again, there was another half of him telling himself to just shoot Keith in the head and get it over with. Though something told him if he did that, there would be no possible way he'd earn Ellis's... he hated to use the word, but all he could think of for such a thing was 'love'. That, or Keith just wouldn't die. All those stories had got him believing the man walking alongside 'his' Ellis was immortal, or at least something along those lines.

"Ah, thurr we go!" Ellis said as he threw open the door to the safehouse and Keith gave a loud, thankful sigh. Both Nick and Coach, however, seemed more then a little unhappy about the fact they would be sharing the small safehouse with both Ellis and Keith. The night would be torture for half of the group, or so it seemed.

"Ahh, Coach …" Nick mumbled, patting the man on the back as he shook his head and walked into the bedroom. "Goodluck." He spoke in a husky voice before shutting the door and, surprisingly, locking it. Nick stood and stared, gun shaking in his hand and eyes twitching as he set to the far end of the room and listened unhappily to Keith and Ellis as they talked.

And talked. And talked. And talked. And just when Nick was about to jump up and give the two a good beating, Keith stood from the ground and pulled off his cap. "Well, El … Er, whatcha' face … I'm kinda tired, ya' know? Think that big guy likes me 'nough to let me room up with 'im?" Immediately Ellis nodded while Nick smirked and shrugged. "Never know until you try, right?" he spoke. Payback for making him sit with those two. God, what torture. "Hey, thanks man! I can see why Ellis likes ya' so much!" the man spoke, patting Nick on the shoulder and making him cringe before picking the lock of the door and heading inside with a loud yawn.

At those words, Nick turned to look at Ellis, who was, for once, being silent and looking out the bars on the door. "What'd he mean by that, 'El'?" Nick asked, arching a brow and leaning forward. Ellis still didn't talk. Rather, he just slightly puffed out his cheeks and turned his body the other way, knee's pulled to his chest and gun resting between him. "What? Embarrassed to tell me something, kid?" the elder asked with a snicker as he crawled closer. Oh, how much like a mother he felt at the moment, but he was hoping it would all be worth it. And it was, thank god.

"Hey." He whispered just as soon as he was close enough, wrapping his arms around the others torso and pulling him close, smirking when he heard the surprised gasp and saw the other start to struggle to get free. "You ignoring me, Ellis?" Nick questioned, imitating the boys accent as he moved to press his lips to the kids ear.

"He-Hell naw, I ain't ignoring ya'! But even if I was, goddammit, I ain't no teddy bear!" Ellis yelled, face just slightly red as he continued to try and free himself. Nick covered his mouth with one of his hands and frowned. "Shush up, overalls, or else your buddy and Coach might hear." Immediately Ellis did as he was told. Almost. He quieted himself, but other then that, he still kept whispering questions like, 'What 're ya doin'?' and so on and so on. After about the fifth time he was asked, Nick rolled his eyes and removed his hand, then turned Ellis around so that they were facing each other.

"If you were patient enough, maybe you'd find out." Was the only reply he gave before smashing their lips together.


	8. Chapter 8

Well, wasn't that a surprise. It was a surprise to Nick, and he knew that it was the same for Ellis. Afterall, they never had been on the best of terms, and recently … Well, he'd been getting more and more annoyed with the brunette. And what with Keith coming along, he could almost see the hatred seeping out of himself. But he hadn't thought it such a big deal, his change in feelings. How secretly, he'd wanted to catch up with Ellis when he wandered ahead, and stay by his side so nothing bad would happen to him, as it often did. Poor guy, it seemed the special infected were attracted to him. He could see why. But just because suddenly he felt so protective of the boy, well, the conman would never have guessed that he would do such a thing. Ignoring the fact that he'd wanted to, he had self-control. Or he thought he had.

By the time he'd realized what he was doing, it was far too late. When he finally backed away, it seemed almost unbearable. He immediately licked his lips, savoring the aftertaste of Ellis. The lips were soft, which was quite surprising, and they tasted absolutely delicious, underneath all of that blood and dirt, of course. And he felt just a bit bad for it, but the expression on Ellis' face was irresistible. The look of shock, mixed with confusion, it was almost enough to drive him over the edge. But he kept his cool just long enough for Ellis to realize what had just happened.

"Nick, what tha' hell!?" he cried increduluosly, causing Nick to clamp a hand over the distraught boys mouth. "Shush it, overalls!" the elder hissed quietly, bringing a finger to his lips. "They're going to hear. And if they wake up, no matter how horny I am, I ain't gonna do nothing with you, other then get pissed off." Nick continued, pulling his hand away after a few seconds only to reveal the glaring face of an adorable hick. "That was jus' uncalled for, shuttin' me up in a way like that. Nearly gave me a heartattack!" Ah, of course Ellis had to be just the idiot that would come to that sort of a conclusion.

"Hate to break it to ya' kid, but that one wasn't to shut you up." He spoke, smirking slightly as he moved to rest on his bottom while ellis took it all in. "What, ya-ya mean you're … you're a queer?" he asked silently, leaning forward and staring as if he'd never seen such a thing in his life. "I ain't a queer, I'm just horny. Don't tell me you don't feel the exact same as me." Nick growled huskily, pulling his hick 'friend closer by his shirt and staring intently into his eyes. "N-not really, but, uh you're kinda freakin' me out …"

"If you're freaked out now, guess you'll be traumatized for life by the time I finish with ya'." Nick whispered, moving in for another kiss which Ellis readily rejected. Of course the hick struggled, but Nick kept his hold, snarling whenever the hick bit at his lower lip. It took much longer then the conman would've liked for his little friend to settle down, but it did happen, and he was finally able to adjust their positions so that he was hovering over the still frightened hick.

Nick was tempted to just continue the kissing, and leave it at that. But his body was not going to allow such a thing, and that meant he might just have to deal without ellis' constant chattering, or at least to him, for the rest of the trip. Sadly, that sounded … unfortunate. But he couldn't stop his hands as they moved to hurriedly pull of the hicks shirt, not ripping just because he knew there would be no change of clothes anytime soon. Ah, but when that bare skin was visible, it was almost enough to make him wish he'd ripped it off. However he merely moved to place kisses on the sweaty skin, trying to stray free of all the bruises and cuts. Way too difficult. So he decided to move on and pull of the mans overalls, trying not to get annoyed at the constant kicking.

"A-Alright, if we're gunna do this, I best not be the only one who has tah be naked!" Ellis cried, covering his chest like one of those embarrassed females. Nick merely rolled his eyes, then sighed as he started to pull off his suit. "Fine, fine. Whatever'll please the lady." He joked, smirking happily when he spotted the slight change of color that appeared on Ellis' cheeks.

Once he was down to nothing, the conman breathed in deeply, trying to contemplate whether or not this was a good idea. Damn, he just couldn't think straight, though. "am I allowed tyo take these off, now?" he asked, arching a brow as he tugged on the hicks orange boxers. Hell, not the color he would've chosen, but what did he and Ellis really have in common, anyway? Without permission he finished stripping the kid of his clothing, trying not to laugh at the way he squirmed. "C'mon, don't be so nervous. You'll piss me off." At that, it was Ellis' turn to snort. "What? When don't I piss ya' off, Nick."

"Good question." He murmured before leaning in for another kiss that was quickly broken. "Sorry kid, this ain't gunna feel too good, but it's all I got." Nick said with an almost sad tone as he spat on his fingers, then rubbed the saliva in and breathed deeply. "It better not hurt too much …" Ellis murmured, tensing when he felt the first finger rub against his entrance. "Like I said … sorry." Nick repeated before pushing in the first digit and watching Ellis' face.

He didn't look to pleased as Nick probed, and he didn't sound it either. Cursing softly, Nick managed only to roll his eyes as he inserted the next, receiving a grunt and another barrage of insults.

"Listen, listen. Shut yer' trap." Nick hissed before pulling the hick in for a rough kiss, if only to help keep his mind off of the probing and prodding that was happening in his lower half. And it seemed to work as he added in a third finger, receiving only a whine from the other as he thrust his tongue into the warm caverns of Ellis' mouth. It tasted wonderful, but now he had to wonder how the man would feel. So, as soon as he pulled away and positioned himself, without any sort of consent of sign that it was alright to move on, he thrust inside of Ellis, covering his mouth with a hand and trying not to get too tumorz as his hand was bit.

Being the kind person that he was, Nick waited for a few seconds before pulling his hand away and running his fingers through the hicks hair. He did feel like he wanted to comfort the man, and that was just so unlike him. "You ready?" he asked, deciding for once it would be alright to just be a bit nice. Afterall, that look of pain on the mans face, well … Despite his looks, he wasn't into that sort of thing. Ellis soon nodded, and mumbled, "Best be gentle, or I'll … I'll hurt ya'." Nick managed to suppress his chuckle, though a soft, barely noticeable smile appeared on his face. "Yeah right, kid." He mumbled just before pulling out and pushing back in, starting up a slow, steady pace so Ellis could adjust.

"Damn, Nick … yer so slow …" Ellis insulted just as soon as he felt he could, smirking and trying to steady his heavy breathing as Nick began to pound into him faster. Ellis didn't necessarily get the best of it all, but after awhile he began to moan quietly and stop cursing at Nick, who'd been doing nothing but kissing at his skin and breathing in ecstasy. Unfortunately for Ellis as well, almost as soon as he'd started to enjoy it, it was near over. Both he and Nick were at their edge, and it was obvious. "Damn, ain't that a … a bi-bitch." The hick managed to curse one last time as he held tightly to Nick and gritted his teeth together, Nick doing almost the same thing to keep from making any noise as he filled him to the rim with his hot seed.

"Never expected … I'd be doin' something like that w-with you …" Ellis spoke as he tried to catch his breath, Nick already wiping himself off and getting dressed. "Yeah. I know how you feel." The elder mumbled, throwing Ellis' clothes at him. "C'mon. No time to talk. Get dressed so we can wake up those two bimbos. It's their turn to guard." Ellis stood still for a few seconds before sighing and starting to dress. "Well, while we're dressing, I ever tell you 'bout the time me 'n Keith …"

"Ellis, is now the best time?"


End file.
